UPDATED: Ryan Lochte’s teammates confirm robbery story was a lie
The circumstances surrounding the alleged robbery of four U.S. Olympic swimmers—including onetime reality TV star Ryan Lochte—have gotten as murky as that algae-filled green pool water. Now Brazilian police are saying that the men were actually involved in an incident at a gas station. One official told The New York Times: “Unfortunately, the swimmers told one lie after another,” adding, “We’ve been able to determine that there was no armed assault.”
According to The Times, the swimmers stopped at a gas station around 6 a.m. to use the bathroom. “In the process, according to the account by investigators, damage was done to the bathroom door and a discussion ensued with the manager and a security guard,” the Times reports. “Someone at the gas station called the police, but by the time a police car arrived at the scene the swimmers were gone. Witnesses, including a person who offered to translate for the swimmers, said that they paid money to the manager before leaving.”
ABC News has the bit that police said that the men “offered 100 reals and $20” as compensation. Per ABC, Brazilian police said the men were “so drunk when they gave their initial testimony, they couldn’t provide an accurate description of their assailants or even how many there were.”